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Some people, it seems, are just born with natural abilities. Some are naturally athletic, some are artistic and some are good at math, among other subjects. I, however, did not get those attributes. What I did get is the ability to learn and retain historical facts. For whatever reason, this comes easy to me, and I find myself being able to remember names, places and dates -- you know, all the boring stuff one tends not to remember from their history classes. I am barely able to remember what I did last weekend, but ask me the date of the passage of the U.S. Constitution, and I can usually get it right.
I often talk to older folks, and they tell me that when they were in school, they didn't like history. The subject was endlessly boring, but as they became older, they developed an interest in it. My colleague from Historic Fort Steuben, Judy Bratten, always said it is because those who developed an interest in history later in life, did so because they now had a history themselves. I tend to agree because I have seen it firsthand so many times. With that in mind, looking back at my career in history, and specifically at historic sites over many years, I am struck by the common themes and common questions I was asked at these locations by folks who were just developing their interest in the past.
When I worked at historic house museums, one of my main duties was giving tours, and typically most historic houses lacked their historic service or utilitarian spaces. What I mean by this is their kitchens, bathrooms, smokehouses and the like. These places were part of the everyday lives of our ancestors, and they looked a little different than those we use today.
For instance, most bigger houses had two kitchens, a summer kitchen and a winter kitchen. The summer kitchen was a separate building built away from the main residence because as cooking was done over an open fire, the heat generated, especially in the summer months, was oppressive and if this was done in a separate space, it wouldn't contribute to the heat of the house. In the winter, the kitchen was located typically on a lower level and the heat generated from that space could contribute to the heat in the house.
I can think of one specific house in our area that could have had this arrangement and that was the home of Bezaleel Wells called "The Grove." This stately home was located in the South End of Steubenville. It was built at the very end of the 18th century, in the 1790s, and demolished about 1902. The Grove also had other outbuildings like an outhouse or privy, and most certainly a smokehouse. A smokehouse was an important structure because the process of smoking meat was a key part in preserving and putting up stores of food. Wells did have a smokehouse because early in the 19th century, there were charges pressed against a thief who had stolen meat from the place. To curb theft, most smokehouses were built with a locking door and wall studs that were placed close together so would-be criminals could not cut through the building as easily from the outside.
If you are interested in the outbuildings of historic homes from our area, I would encourage you to visit the Historic Fort Steuben when the archaeologists are onsite from Franciscan University of Steubenville. For the last 46 years, they have been excavating the site and currently are excavating the home of Judge John Miller. His home was located on that site earlier than 1856 and included several outbuildings in which the foundations can be seen emerging from the earth. As the archaeological team removes soil from the site, more of the story is being revealed and it gives a fantastic view of life in Steubenville in the 19th century.
I do know of one standing historic kitchen that is still used for that purpose in downtown Steubenville. It is part of an Italianate home built by James Means, owner of a Steubenville foundry where state Route 7 is now located. The kitchen in question is reportedly from about 1812, which would make it one of the oldest structures known to be standing in Steubenville. It is certainly a rare survivor in our community.
Another important question that was asked of me, especially when I was at historic Fort Steuben, is where did the soldiers go to the bathroom. This is an important question because at its core, this question seems to make the past relatable. The answer is actually our best guess. We don't know for certain what the facilities were like at the fort. This is one of those details that was not recorded in the historical maps or accounts of the 150 or so soldiers who were in residence.
It was just one of those details that wasn't deemed worthy of record. Most likely there was a latrine somewhere on site, whether it was inside or outside the structure is the question. Arguments could be made for both scenarios. Archaeologically, the fort's latrine hasn't been found, but, I would imagine if it was, it would provide incredible insight into daily life of the soldiers. Often these sites served as trash receptacles and today are treasure troves of artifacts, that is if you can get past the fact that it is a outhouse.
All in all, working at these historic sites gave me a tremendous opportunity to learn about the ordinary history of the common person and how daily life was lived in the distant past. If we know where to look, the clues to this past are still here. And it serves to make that history relatable to those just discovering how interesting and important the past is.
(Zuros is the Hancock County administrator)